Refinancing VA Loans: Reducing Your Mortgage

Military.com

Homes are expensive, and paying off loans takes a great deal of time and money. Any veteran thinking about refinancing their house, or who just needs a way to reduce their interest rates, should look into an Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL), which can reduce the interest rate when a VA home loan is refinanced.

This loan is only an option on real estate that was originally purchased with a VA loan, but they're relatively easy to acquire. If you currently have an adjustable rate mortage, you may opt for a fixed mortage rate when applying for the IRRRL. There's no appraisal, credit underwriting, or certifiicate of eligibility requirement, and you don't need to use any money out-of-pocket.

Currently, interest rates on these loans are low, so it's worth learing about refinancing opportunities. Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist at Freddie Mac. says that, "On average, borrowers who refinanced reduced their interest rate by about 1.8 percentage points." This means that, on average, homeowners save about 33 percent on their interest rates.